52 yr old male at day 17 of BHR right side.
You may have seen in my "What did Santa Bring You?" post that I recieved a stationary recumbent bike for Christmas. Well I celebrated yesterday by walking to the corner and back with one crutch (approx 200 yards), I did have to stop a few times a long the way and was sure to ice down good when I returned.
Later in the after noon, I couldn't resist trying out the new bike. It has a back that reclines to about 135 degrees of the seat, so I put it all the way back to keep my knee from having to raise to a 90 degree angle at the top of the peddle cycle. I also set the machine on the least possible resistance. After getting my feet into the peddles, I slowly worked the peddles back and forth until i felt I was ready for a full turn. I played like this for 5 - 10 minutes, reversing the direction until i was pretty sure the action wasn't going to generate any new or scarey pains. I then began a flat 10 minute work out at slow but steady speed. The more I peddled, the better it felt, it was like sractching an itch. Again I was sure to ice down afterwards for 15 minutes.
I had a little stiffness and some light throbbing last night as I went to bed (past my med deadline) but once I got to sleep, I slept for a full uninterupted 6 hours last night, the longest rest I've had since coming home from the hospital.
Anyone know a down side to this recumbent bike activity this early in recovery? I sure hope not, cause I feel terrific this morning and looking forward to a warm shower, a bit of oatmeal and fruit and then to get back in that saddle.